Allies: UN must act on Iran

U.S. leads call for Security Council to consider nuclear issue

January 13, 2006|By Cam Simpson, Washington Bureau.

WASHINGTON — France, Germany and Britain announced Thursday they were joining the Bush administration's call to place Iran before the UN Security Council, where Tehran could face sanctions after ending two years of talks with Washington's European allies by restarting its uranium enrichment program this week.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice quickly applauded the move, telling reporters at a news conference in Washington that bringing the regime before the UN, a long-held goal of the Bush administration, was justified by Tehran's "dangerous defiance of the entire international community."

Perhaps equally important, three U.S. officials familiar with the diplomatic efforts said Thursday that Russia and China, key allies with Tehran in past disputes, were not likely to stop the Bush administration's march to the UN. Russia may even end up supporting the U.S. move, two of the officials said, while China appeared most likely to abstain.

In a move choreographed with Washington, the foreign ministers of France, Germany and Britain formally announced Thursday in Berlin that they wanted an emergency meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency board to press for a resolution referring Iran to the Security Council.

The decision marks a watershed; the European powers are aligned with Washington over Iran's nuclear programs as never before. And placing Iran before the Security Council would be an important diplomatic victory for the Bush administration, which still faces skepticism over its presentation of false intelligence on Iraqi weapons in 2003 and over its failure to achieve consensus on the invasion that followed.

But it is an open question how much action on Iran will be allowed by Russia and China, both of which hold veto power at the Security Council. And reluctance from the two--strong economic partners of Tehran's--could limit the Bush administration's options and leverage, along with other realities.

Foremost among the other possible constraints, according to experts, is Iran's ability to direct attacks against U.S. forces in neighboring Iraq, its potential to destabilize other nations in the region and its power to wreak havoc on world oil markets if the diplomatic crisis with the West continues to escalate.

Thursday's developments kicked up prices for a barrel of light sweet crude by 71 cents, to $64.65, on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The latest crisis erupted Tuesday when Iran, despite stern warnings from the U.S. and its European partners, started removing 52 seals placed on equipment and facilities at three sites related to the nation's uranium enrichment program.

Tehran has insisted its enrichment efforts are aimed solely at developing fuel for seven nuclear power plants it wants to build by 2025, but inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency have raised serious concerns about the regime's intentions, including documenting efforts to create weapons-grade materials.

The IAEA also discovered that Tehran was in business with the black-market nuclear network run by Pakistani scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan, which helped Libya and North Korea develop nuclear weapons programs before it was shut down.

The European powers said Thursday that their talks with Tehran, under way since October 2003, had reached an impasse after the regime refused deals to end the stalemate and started tearing off the IAEA's seals--a provocative act among nations who are party to international nuclear covenants.

"This is not a dispute between Iran and Europe, but between Iran and the whole international community," the three foreign ministers said in a joint statement, adding: "We believe the time has now come for the Security Council to become involved to reinforce the authority of IAEA resolutions."

Rice was expected to discuss the issue by phone overnight Thursday or Friday with her Chinese counterpart, Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing.

"My sense is they [the Chinese] won't want to be the only country blocking," a senior U.S. official involved in the effort said late Thursday. "They recognize the nature of the Iranian activities, and that this is a clear red line."

The senior official said he was "fairly confident" China would not block the move. Ultimately, the official said, the U.S. is seeking to gain momentum that could help win additional support from India, Brazil and other key nations in the IAEA. They were among 12 nations that abstained when the board passed a resolution in September calling Iran's program "illegal and illogical," a move that put Tehran just one more vote away from the Security Council.

Envoys from all six of the top powers involved--the U.S., France, Germany, Britain, Russia and China--were preparing to meet early next week in London in a bid to forge consensus.

Although putting Iran in front of the UN would be a plum in its own right, the ultimate ability of the U.S. to force serious or effective action remained in doubt Thursday.